Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing
praises to our God;
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
This Advent season, we were asked to write about what worship means to us as individuals. When proposed with this question I thought,
“What on earth can I write about?” As
quickly as that thought came to mind, God told me, “music and singing of
course.” So I have thought about my
personal soloistic and choral experiences and realized that this is when I am
most with God. No wonder I am so
passionate about music. It is simply
because this is how I worship God.
After a recent rehearsal, that was becoming a little
frustrating……the altos couldn’t get their part while I played it on the piano
and at the same time I’m singing the soprano part…….I stopped. I told the kids that I considered this---even
practicing---to be what we are capable as giving to God as our sacrifice, our
worship. See, I feel to just meander
through the music, wait for someone else to sing it for you first or someone
else to be the “leader”, to me is a very lazy way to serve God. I feel when we open our mouth to sing it
should be the most beautiful thing we can summon out of our very soul to offer
God.
Granted, I do understand that some
are more gifted than others but God says in Psalm 33:3,” Sing to him a new
song; play skillfully, and shout for joy.”
Again, it doesn't say play mindlessly but rather, skillfully. It doesn’t say only sing if you have a “good”
voice. I feel we should all take steps
towards skillfully praising God. Give
100% in all you do. God has blessed me
with a beautiful instrument and many others which I have the privilege to work
with on Wednesdays and Sundays. So, what
is stopping us from using these instruments to skillfully praise God? FEAR!
You see, the devil would love for us to sit idle in the pew, not open
our mouths, play the role of aimlessly doing……..you guessed it…….nothing! HE WINS----simple as that. Each Sunday morning I look out over the
congregation and see those singing, raising their hands in praises to God,
children opening hymnals to the wrong page but still trying to follow along and
sing. Then, there are those who stand
there with their mouth shut through the entire hymn. It could be the most upbeat-happy song and
nothing, no emotion of happiness or a tapping of the foot. I ask myself, “How can this be?” My heart sinks in sadness. I am so saddened that these people are so
fearful….and of what, someone might hear them? Psalm 66:8 says, “Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise
be heard.” It doesn’t say; let the sound
of his praise be heard by only those with “pretty” voices.
So as we go into this Advent season, I challenge each of
you to sing like you have never sung before, skillfully use your voice, however
God has given it to you whether it be scratchy, breathy, loud and off key--open
your mouth and more importantly your heart, as a sacrifice to God. Pour out your very soul! You might be surprised at what comes out!
As I close I leave you
with this, “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the Earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!” I hope we can all do this, give it a go and
don’t be scared.
For in his name and
glory we sing!!
Monica Hamilton
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